Laura Bartlett, Senior Vice President, BOK Financial — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 5–10 How are you involved with NAFOA? “BOK Financial delivers financial services to 40 Tribes and Pueblos across the country. We participate in NAFOA as a sponsor and attend NAFOA regularly — including the virtual NAFOAs!” Tell us about your favorite NAFOA Memory: “[The]…

Ariel Farinango (Native Inca), 2019 Leadership Summit Alumnus; Investment Banking Analyst, William Blair — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 1–2 How are you involved with NAFOA? “First became involved with NAFOA through its Leadership Summit in 2019. Joined NAFOA as a Youth Communication and Advisory Consultant in 2020 and interacted with the NAFOA team/organization on a frequent basis.”

Christie Jacobs, Director (Retired), Indian Tribal Governments Office, IRS — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 15–20 How are you involved with NAFOA? In my federal government career, I was often a speaker at NAFOA conferences. Tell us about your favorite NAFOA Memory: I have so many! NAFOA conferences always inspired me with new perspectives and information due to the…

James Meggesto, Partner, Holland & Knight LLP — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 20+ How are you involved with NAFOA? Corporate advisory board. What does NAFOA mean to you? NAFOA is a great conference because of the format, the types of tribal officials and industry folks that come, and the opportunity to directly engage with the attendees. — — — — — Celebrate 40 years of NAFOA with us by sharing your favorite NAFOA memory. And, join us on April 4–5 at the Hyatt Regency Seattle in Seattle, WA for the 40th NAFOA Annual Conference.

Ellie Beckett, NAFOA consultant and former NAFOA staff — “New Orleans was my first NAFOA conference and I learned quickly that the NAFOA community knows how to have a good time!”

Jen Parisien, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 10–15 Tell us about your favorite NAFOA Memory: “NAFOA provides connections for the economic passions of the community. The Orange Book as an example was a group of volunteers that worked together for two years to see it through fruition. Amazing!” What does…

Christine Nowaczyk, Senior Vice President, BOK Financial — How many NAFOA Conferences have you attended? 5–10 How are you involved with NAFOA? As a representative of a sponsor firm [BOK Financial]. Tell us about your favorite NAFOA Memory: “Great memories of the 2019 Fall event at Mystic Lake with gracious hospitality from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. …

Three Native American women share their experience in Corporate America. By Ariel Farinango (Native Inca), 2019 NAFOA Leadership Summit Alumnus While Corporate America has boosted its diversity and inclusion efforts in recent years, Native Americans remain vastly underrepresented. It is important to include Native American talent in Corporate America, as…

Every day, tribal officials serve Indian nations by making difficult decisions, and more and more often non-tribal courts are exposing them to the peril of litigation and potential liability in state and federal courts. Lawsuits against tribal officials are nothing new. Those frustrated by their inability to sue Indian tribes…